Charlotte Woodward Organ Transplant Discrimination Prevention Act

Floor Speech

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 2706, the Charlotte Woodward Organ Transplant Discrimination Prevention Act.

Mr. Speaker, this bill prohibits eligible individuals from being denied a lifesaving organ transplant based solely on their disability status. Existing Federal laws, including the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Rehabilitation Act, and the Affordable Care Act, already prohibit organ transplant centers from discriminating based solely on disability.

However, there are still cases where people with disabilities have been denied access to organ transplants. This is often because of misperceptions about how a disability impacts the medical likelihood of transplant success or unfounded assumptions regarding disabled persons' abilities to comply with postoperative care.

This bill prohibits covered entities from determining that an individual is ineligible to receive a transplant based solely on the fact that the individual has a disability. It also acknowledges the importance of support networks and services and helping with postoperative care.

Mr. Speaker, organ transplants can save lives, and it is important that the system be free from discrimination. I am glad that we are taking this step to clarify and build upon existing civil rights protections for people with disabilities. I thank our colleagues on the Energy and Commerce Committee, Mrs. Cammack and Representative Dingell, as well, for their bipartisan work on this bill.

Mr. Speaker, I encourage all my colleagues to vote ``yes'' on H.R.

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Mr. PALLONE. Mr. Speaker, in closing, I think Mrs. Cammack explained very well why we need to pass this bill, and I would ask all of my colleagues to support it.

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